Olivia Drake – Page 14

When Emily McEvoy '22 began her college career at Wesleyan in 2018, she felt a deep sense of detachment from the local environment. At a campus in the middle of her home state, how could this be? The insularity, she says, was jarring, and she decided to dedicate her time to combat this issue. McEvoy immediately became involved with several local organizations, including Middletown's North End Action Team, and the student cohort of volunteers who helped staff their office. Most recently, McEvoy has been an organizer with the Middletown Mutual Aid Collective, which has raised close to $70,000 to support…

Several Wesleyan faculty, students, alumni, parents, and staff have recently been featured in the news: March 10 EIN Presswire - AcademicInfluence.com Announces the Top-Ranked Private Graduate Schools in the U.S. for 2021. Mentions Wesleyan. March 11 The Middletown Press - Wesleyan University: COVID tests essential for return to in-person learning. Focuses on Wesleyan employees' efforts in creating the COVID-19 testing site. Market Screener - Safari Energy Reaches 500th Commercial Solar Project. Mentions that Safari Energy's first project was a small, three-kilowatt (kW) solar system installed at Wesleyan and how "that project was quickly expanded with the addition of a 92…

On March 18, the Center for the Arts presented "A Conversation with Theater Artist Miranda Haymon ’16." Haymon, visiting instructor of theater, is Wesleyan's inaugural Breaking New Ground Theater Artist-in-Residence, a new residency that brings early-career Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) theater artists to campus. The discussion was led by Sam Morreale ’19. During the conversation, Haymon discussed artistic processes, Blackness, queerness, Brechtian analysis, the impacts of the pandemic on artmaking, and ideas for the future. Haymon compared a theater performance to a "living document" in which the performance, audience, and actors are constantly changing. "The work changes, and…

During the 65th Biophysical Society Annual Meeting held virtually Feb. 22–26, Shawn H. Lin ’22 was honored with an Undergraduate Poster Award for his work on "Elucidation of Interactions Between Integration Host Factor and a DNA Four-Way Junction." Lin, a Wesleyan Freeman Scholar, is among only six undergraduate students internationally to receive the award. Lin's advisors are Ishita Mukerji, Fisk Professor of Natural Science, professor of molecular biology and biochemistry, and Candice Etson, assistant professor of physics. Lin's poster is below (click to enlarge):

On March 15, a panel of Wesleyan faculty and staff experts discussed the importance of receiving the COVID-19 vaccine during a campus-wide webinar titled "Why Get Vaccinated?" Speakers included Dr. Thomas McLarney, medical director of Davison Health Center; Donald Oliver, Daniel Ayres Professor of Biology, professor of molecular biology and biochemistry; Ishita Mukerji, Fisk Professor of Natural Science, professor of molecular biology and biochemistry; William Johnston, John E. Andrus Professor of History; and Frederick Cohan, Huffington Foundation Professor in the College of the Environment, professor of biology. Janice Naegele, Alan M. Dachs Professor of Science, professor of biology, and Dean…

During the 2021 Shasha Seminar for Human Concerns, held March 11–13, participants explored the topic of "Truth (and Lies) in Our Time." The Shasha Seminar is an annual educational forum for Wesleyan alumni, parents, and friends that provides an opportunity to explore issues of global concern in a small seminar environment. Endowed by James Shasha '50, P'82, the Shasha Seminar supports lifelong learning and encourages participants to expand their knowledge and perspectives on significant issues. David McCraw, vice president and deputy general counsel for The New York Times, presented the Shasha Seminar's keynote address titled "Lies and Liberty: The Future…

Edward Torres, assistant professor of the practice in theater, was named an Old Globe 2021 Classical Directing Fellow. Torres has directed multiple productions at the San Diego, Calif.-based Old Globe, including Familiar, Native Gardens, and Water by the Spoonful, as well as two readings for the Powers New Voices Festivals. He recently directed a podcast version of Macbeth for NEXT Podcast and Play On Shakespeare. Torres directed the premiere of Kristoffer Diaz’s The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity at Victory Gardens Theater and Teatro Vista, which won two Jeff Awards. He's also the artistic director emeritus at Teatro Vista. Led…

Below are comments made by Kail during the conversation: On working with others: "I work with my best friends. What's better than that? So I get to go and spend time—10 to 12 hours a day—with the people I respect the most, admire the most. . . . I like to keep a core of people that I have a relationship with in a shorthand and then add 10 new people to the fold to keep on growing. I love meeting new designers, working with new writers, and I've done primarily new stuff. I like being in rehearsal. I like…

On March 9, students took advantage of the 60-degree temperatures in Middletown. Students, who are in their fifth week of spring semester classes, continue to wear face coverings in all public places during the COVID-19 pandemic. For more information, visit Wesleyan's Keep Wes Safe website. (Photos by Olivia Drake) (more…)

Two Wesleyan alumnae were elected chairs of prestigious law firms in 2021. Megan Norris ’83, P’17 was named the first woman CEO of Miller Canfield. And Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher elected Barbara Becker '85 as chair and managing partner. Norris, an accomplished litigator, is a nationally recognized expert and frequent public speaker on the topics of the Family and Medical Leave Act and the Americans With Disabilities Act. Within the Miller Candield, she has served as the leader of the Employment and Labor Group, overseeing the firm’s large and active team of dedicated employment and labor attorneys and staff. She…

Ninety-nine thousand and counting. That's how many times Wesleyan students, faculty, and staff have stuck, swiped, and swirled cotton swabs in their nasal cavities over the past seven months at the Wesleyan COVID-19 testing facility, with hopes for that negative result indicating no presence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA. "Implementing an effective testing program was essential to returning for in-person learning," said Associate Vice President/Dean of Students Rick Culliton, who spearheads Wesleyan's Curricular Contingency Planning Task Force (CCPTF). "Our number one priority is keeping the campus community safe. Having accurate, timely test results has been critical to identifying and containing any cases…

Do political views and anxiety play a functional role in combating COVID-19? According to a recent study by Ori Cantwell '22, the answer is yes. Cantwell, a psychology major, presented his recent study "Yes We (Anxiously) Can: Liberal Ideology and Anxiety Predict Social Distancing during the COVID-19 Pandemic" during the virtual 22nd Annual Convention of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Conference, held Feb. 9–13. "We found that in a sample of over 10,000 American adults, anxiety partially mediated the relationship between liberal ideology and social distancing," Cantwell explained. "Liberals were more anxious than conservatives, and people were most…

McEvoy ’22 Named 2021 Campus Compact Newman Civic Fellow

Wesleyan in the News

Haymon ’16, Morreale ’19 Discuss Theatermaking

Lin ’22 Wins Biophysical Society Poster Award

Wesleyan Experts Explore Benefits of Vaccination

Campus Community Explores “Truth (and Lies) in Our Time” During Shasha Seminar

Torres Named 2021 Classical Directing Fellow for Old Globe

Theater Director Kail ’99 Leads Alumni Career Conversation

Students Enjoy Early Spring Weather on Campus

Norris ’83, P’17, Becker ’85 Elected First Woman Chairs at Law Firms

Staff Work Behind the Scenes to Create a Successful COVID-19 Testing Operation

Cantwell ’22: Liberals Are Anxious About COVID-19 And They Social Distance More